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Bid to Auction Killer's Tools Provokes Disgust

This is a digitized version of an article from The Times’s print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996.
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Nothing hints of the macabre about the items stored in a warehouse for auction: used hardware that includes a drill, four knives, a handsaw, an 80-quart kettle and a freezer.

Such used equipment would usually fetch no more than a few hundred dollars. But auction organizers hope to reap at least $1 million. And business and civic leaders here are working furiously to stop the sale.

The items were among the tools of murder, torture and cannibalism of the late Jeffrey L. Dahmer, the Milwaukee serial killer of 17 men and boys. A judge recently awarded the items -- assets of the Dahmer estate -- to 11 victims' families that had sued for damages.

"I'm aware this says something about our sick society," said Thomas Jacobson, a lawyer for the plaintiffs. "But how else can I compensate my families?"

The idea of such an auction mortifies Joseph Zilber, a wealthy real estate developer and lifelong resident who hated seeing his hometown tarnished by the Dahmer case. Mike Mervis, a spokesman for Mr. Zilber, said: "He decided this was morally incomprehensible. And it was bad for Milwaukee. He became determined that it would not happen."

An associate of Mr. Zilber asked Mr. Jacobson how much would it take to call off the auction.

"One million dollars," Mr. Jacobson replied. "Non-negotiable."

A group called Milwaukee Civic Pride has been set up to collect money in what surely ranks among the strangest fund-raisers ever. The mission: to buy the items and then destroy them.

A deadline of Memorial Day has been set by the group and Mr. Jacobson, so it plans to make an offer soon. The group has announced that $400,000 has been collected, including $100,000 from Mr. Zilber. Much of the money has been mailed in denominations of $10 and $20.

The group has not promised to raise the full $1 million. And Mr. Jacobson insists that he will not settle for less, saying it is a bargain.

"Look at what Camelot brought," Mr. Jacobson said, referring to the $34.5 million auction of goods that belonged to the late Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. "We have two sides to our psyche, the Camelot side and the Dahmer side. You can only imagine what people would pay for some of this stuff. And the sicker the connotation, the bigger the bucks."

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Still, Mr. Jacobson acknowledges that he would rather avoid an auction for Mr. Dahmer's goods, which also include a hypodermic needle, pornographic movies and letters he received while in prison in Portage, Wis. Mr. Dahmer was bludgeoned to death by another inmate in 1994.

Among the public here, there is overwhelming opposition to an auction, and contempt for those looking to make money on the deaths of relatives. It is noted that fewer than half of those killed by Mr. Dahmer were ever listed as missing.

But the families of the victims note that plenty of other interests have acted to make money on the notoreity. There have been Dahmer trading cards, Dahmer comic books.

Janie Hagen, whose brother Richard Guerrero, 19, was among those murdered, said she had no patience for the righteous indignation.

"People call it 'blood money,' " said Ms. Hagen, a secretary. "Yeah, it's my brother's blood. And these people who are all upset. They just care about the P.R. for Milwaukee."

Mr. Jacobson noted that city officials had paid more than $600,000 to the owner of the building where Mr. Dahmer lived, so they could level what was fast becoming an unusual tourist attraction.

"So why" he asked, "can't the families be compensated for their pain and suffering?"

If the civic group fails to raise enough for the Dahmer items, it worries about where they may end up.

"Traveling road shows, carnivals -- who knows," said Mr. Mervis, the spokesman. "It was such a bad rap for the city. Jeffrey Dahmer no more represents Milwaukee than Lizzie Borden represents wherever it is that she's from."

A version of this article appears in print on May 20, 1996, on Page A00010 of the National edition with the headline: Bid to Auction Killer's Tools Provokes Disgust. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe